Seattle Couple, Son Get Botulism From Home-Canned Beets

Two 73-year-old Seattle residents have been on respirators for six weeks after suffering attacks of botulism from eating tainted home-canned beets, health officials say.

Their 40-year-old son is still receiving speech and muscle therapy for the lingering effects of the paralyzing illness.

"It may take weeks or months (for the older patients) to recover. It's a slow process," said Dr. Robert Thompson, the Group Health Cooperative physician who treated the parents.

Only about two cases of botulism a year are reported in Washington state and only about 40 are diagnosed nationwide. The neurological illness, stemming from a potent bacterial toxin found in improperly canned food, can be fatal if not diagnosed quickly enough.

The recent cases were diagnosed when the woman went to Group Health Hospital in late May with double vision, droopy eyelids, slurred speech and light-headedness.

Her husband and son had no symptoms that night. But the next morning the father was unable to lift his head from the bed and was taken to Group Health with general weakness, slurred speech and the inability to move his eyes.

The son went to Harborview Medical Center with difficulty swallowing, slurred speech, double vision and general weakness.

Group Health physicians immediately suspected botulism in the woman but were puzzled because the patients said they couldn't remember eating home-canned food and the woman's symptoms were not getting worse.

Not until the next day did her son mention that they had eaten home-canned beets two nights before.

The botulism toxin was found in the parents' stool samples and in the discarded beet jars. Dozens of improperly home-canned fruits and vegetables in mayonnaise jars were collected from the parents' home and disposed of after sterilization.

In food-poisoning cases, patients are sometimes embarrassed and reluctant to reveal eating food they canned. "That's not unusual," said Dr. John Kobayashi, chief epidemiologist for the state Department of Health.

The 40-year-old son recovered fairly quickly. But the parents had chronic lung problems before the food poisoning and have had a difficult time recovering from the botulism-induced respiratory failure, Thompson said. For privacy reasons, physicians declined to reveal the patients' names.

Botulism is caused by a toxin released by the bacteria clostridium botulinum, which produces spores found in the soil and on almost all fruits, vegetables, meats and fish. Improperly canned foods provide an oxygen-free environment for the spores to germinate and release the powerful toxin, which prevents release of a crucial chemical in the brain.

Paralysis caused by the toxin typically moves down the body and can last several months. Symptoms usually begin 18 to 36 hours after eating the tainted food.

"Just a small amount of the toxin can cause tremendously serious disease," said Dr. Jeffrey Dunn, the neurologist who treated the son.

Kobayashi added: "This is a preventable illness. The incidents underscore the importance of using appropriate canning techniques."

Kobayashi said the typical mistake in home canning is only heating the jars of food in boiling water. That method is safe only for jams, jellies, pickles or fruits, which all have high acid content.

In addition to beets, foods often associated with botulism when improperly canned are asparagus, salsa, spinach, corn, carrots, peppers and fish. All have very little acid, which tends to inactivate the botulinus toxin.

Pressure cooking the food in proper canning jars is much safer because the higher temperatures kill all the botulism spores, Kobayashi said.

------------ SAFE CANNING ------------

For information and publications on proper home canning, call WSU-King County Cooperative Extension Service, Monday-Friday, 296-3970.

In Food: Modern methods must be followed for safety.